Electric alarm-clock



(No Model.)

W. E. HADLOGK. ELECTRIC ALARM GLOGK.

Patented June 11 N4 PLrEns. Pnolouhu m hnr. Wasllinglull. D. C,

' UNITED STATES XVILLIAM E. HADLOCK, OF \VENHAM, MASSACHUSETTS.

ELECTRIC ALARIVE CLOCK- SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 404,9Q6, dated June 11, 1889.

Application filed February 8, 1888. Slerial No. 263.41 (No model.)

1?) (LR whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM E. HADLOCK, of \Venham, county of Essex, State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Pilots Clocks, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like letters on the drawings representing like parts.

The object of my invention is to produce a clock for the use of pilots, the indications of which can be readilyseen at night, as well as in the day-time, the said clock also being provided with means for giving a signal at the end of any desired period of time, and also with means for keeping a log or record of the course of the vessel.

The invention is embodied in a clock having a time-movement of anysuitable or usual construction, the said movement being inclosed in an opaque case at the rear of a trans lucent dial, and at the rear of said case is a lantern by which the said dial maybe illuminated when required, means being provided for sheltering the time-movement from the heat of the lamp, and also for quickly cutting off the light if required, so that there will be no local illumination to interfere with the observations of the pilot. The clock-case is also provided with an opening containing ground glass or other translucent material constitutinga support for a recording strip or log, which may be held in place on said support by suitable clamps, said removable recording-strips being furnished with the names of the different stations or points that the vessel is to pass, and with suitable blanks opposite said points on which may be marked the time at which the vessel arrives at or passes each of the said points. a

It is frequently necessary or desirable in steering the vessel to remain on a certain course for a definite period of time, and in order to prevent the necessity of continually watching or frequently observing the clock means are provided by which an alarm can be sounded at any desired moment, so that if, for instance, it should be desired to retain the vessel 011 a certain course for the period of five minutes, or if for any other reason the pilot needs to know just when the five min utes have elapsed, he can set the alarm device to sound a signal at the end of live minutes, and can then give his undivided attention to other things, instead of having to keep in mind a certain moment and to frequently observe the clock to know when the said moment arrives. The signal is produced by an electric alarm controlled by a circuit-closing device, a portion of which is carried by the hand of the clock and the other portion of which is movable by a suitablehandle around the dial of the clock, so that it maybe set any desired distance in advance of the clockhand, which will close the circuit and cause the alarm to be sounded when it arrives at the member thus set.

In order to produce the minimum of resistance to the movement of the clock-hand,

and at the same time insure the closing of the circuit and the retaining ot the said circuit closed for a short interval only, the circuit-closer is of peculiar construction, and comprises a spring or yielding contact that completes the circuit when the hand arrives at the stationary member, and a second yielding contact, which is normally closed, but which is opened by the movement of the clock-hand with relation to the stationary contact before the first-mentioned contact or yielding circuit-closer has passed the stationary co-operating member and thus opened the circuit. By means of this device, which closes the circuit at one point and then opens it at another point, the circuit may be retained closed and the alarm caused to sound during any desired short period of time, while if the circuit were controlled wholly by the contact between the moving member carried by the minute-hand and the stationary member the closure would have to be of comparatively long duration.

Figure 1 is a front elevation of a pilot-house clock embodying this invention; Fig. 2, a side elevation thereof; Fig. 3, a central vertical section; Fig. 4, a front elevation of a portion of the hand and alarm-circuit closer carried thereby; Fig. 5, a side elevation of said circuit-closer; Fig. 6, a detail showing the several parts of the circuit-closer separately;and Figs. 7 to O, inclusive, details to be referred to.

The chronometer or time-movement proper (indicated at a, Fig. 3) may be of any suitable or usual construction. The said clockmovement may be inclosed wholly or in part in a suitable metallic case, preteraldy circular in shape, and. itself su1 ported by arms a in the main clock-case l), which may be olf wood, and is provided with a dial 1;, of trans lnccnt; material, so that the figures on said dial. and a sullicient portion of the hands of the clock may be seen when the dial is illuminated from behind. The minute and hour hands (I are carried by shafts or arbors projecting from the clo(. l -inovement (t through the dial, in the usual manner.

In order to illuminate the dial from l. ehind, so that the time canbe readily observed with out external illumination, the case b has supported at its rear a lantern f, which is preterably (fastened upon square tubes g, (see Fig. 7, WlllC. is a section on line a}, Fig. 2,) oneat either side of the clock-case, so that said lantern is supported at some distance from the clock-case.

The il'astenings tor the lantern are clearly shown in l igs. ll, 7, and S, the latter being a rear view. The lantern f has lateral. .llanges f, provided with small. holes that lit over pins g, projecting from the tubes and provided with notches that receive the ends of fastening-lmttons pivoted on the .llangcf'.

The rear side of the clock-ease is provided with an opening containing a pane of glass /1, while the trout of the lani'ern-casej'is also n.'ovided with a pane oi. glass 71 so that there are two separate panes of glass and an intermediate air-space between the lantern and the eh)cl;.-movement, which is thus almost wholly protected from the heatii'ig el'i'ect of the lantern, as the air can llow up freely thmugh the tubes 5 and. through the space between the glass panes 7&- 7i. i I

In order to further intercept the light and heat when the illumination is not requirei'l or when for any reason it is desired to wholly cut oil? the artilieial or local light, which might interfere with the pilots observations, a iiexible opaque screen 1 is r vided, which is comiceted with a spring-roller 1', of an usual or suitable construction, and is provided with an operating-cord 1", carried over suitable pulleys or guides 1" f, and. provided with a handle 1?, a -o1 )erating with Zttlilitablo catch. or 'l'astening i" outside the case. (See Figs. 2 and 7.) Thus by drawing down the handle F and placing it in the fastening 1", as shown in ll ig. 2, the screen '1' is unwound from the roller '11 and drawn up through the space between the panes of glass 71 71. and wholly cuts the light of the lantern oil. from he dial; but by .lisengaging the handle the screen, will inunediately be wound on the roller 1/, and thus permit the light to enter the clock-case Z) and fall on. the rear of the dial. 0, so that the time can be easily read. The lantern preferably has two or more burners, and the light is dili'used in the case and by the translucent dial, so that the clockmovement a does nii tobscure the dial, 7 One end. of the cloclccase I; provided with a panel or opening /1,(see lfiig. 2,) containing ground glass or other transluwnt material, which attords a support For a tablet or log strip L', which may have printed on it the various stations or points ol. observation that the vessel. to pass, and from which the position of the vessel is lcnown, and in connection with said station-names are spaces on which the time at which. the vessel passes such stations may be written by the pilot in charge, thus keeping a conmlete log or record of the run. of the vessel. The ease I) is pro vided with spring-clamps 75 (see Figs. 2 and 5), the latter a section on .line Ifiig. 2) at the end of said tablet-support,bymeans of which the tablet may be held in place, and by which a new tablet can easily and quickly be substituted for one which is removed.

The light from the lantern f in the interior of the clock-case is sul'licimit to illuminii te the paper tablets, so that the statioinnames can be easily read and the time indications properly made.

The hands (I 0 ol. the clock are covm'cd by a crystal in, supported in a bezel or annular t'rame composed of two parts an, the l'ormer containing the crystal 7)) and sin-owing into the latter part it, which. is itselt' secured to the cloclvcase l) at the [rout of. the dial. The said. crystal in is shown in this inslanee as bored in the center to term a bearing for a stud 0, having a flange or collar o, that rests against the inner surface of the (rystal, and a milled head or handle o that lits over the end of the stud and. bears against the outer surface of. the crystal, asclearly shown in l ig. I), bein preferably :t'astened upon. the st u d o 'I iy means of a screw 0, the stem of which screws into the stud o and the head of which bears against; the handle 0 so that the portions o 0 may be drawn up against the face oi? the crystal as tightly as may be desirei'l. A setscrew 0 fastens the handle o upon the stud 0, so that it cannot turn. inilepemlently, but when turned. will cause the stud to turn with it. The inner head or flange o ol said stud is provided with an arm or point er p, the end of. which bears with spririg-pressure against a shoulder 71, on the inner surlami; ol' the portion n ol": the bezel, thus making electric contact with said bezel in all positions oi said pointer around the same. The said pointer is extemled inward. to the eloelvdial and provided with a linger 7) just over ihe minute divisions, so that the said pointer maybe 2t(- curately set at any desired position with relation to the minute-divisions.

The minute-halal d (see Figs. .l-, 5, and (3) has supported. on but insulated l'rom il; a ln'acket 7-, having connected with it by a spring '1" a carrier r of rigid material, having attached to its outer end a spring r, provided at its end with acontact-linger r',whieh in the normal condition of both springs r w bears against a sti'itionary contact-pieee r, summrted on and electrically connected wit h the hand (I olf the clock, which is (mnnccted with one terminal 2 ol' the alarnneircuit, (see lOS Fig. 3,) the other terminal 3 of which is connected with thebezel n n, and thus with the pointer 19, which is provided with a contact projection 13 The contact-carrierr has conn ected with it, near the end of the spring portion 1", a contact-spring 4', which in the advance of the hands will engage the contact 19 and thus make electrical connection between the said point p and the spring 0*, carrier r and spring r to the contact r on the hand, thus completing the alarm-circuit. As the hand advances, the spring 1'' remains in contact with the projection p preventing forward movement of the carrier 7 while the bracket 4" and contact r continue to move forward with the hand. will causethe contact r to move forward with or follow the contact 7' as it advances until the said spring brings up on the carrier r when the said spring r and contact 7- will also be arrested, owing to the engagement of the spring 1' with the projection p and the contact r in its further forward movement will break the circuit at r '1 although the said circuit may be connected at p r for some time longer. This construction permits a sufficient overlapping of the spring 7 and projection p to afford a certain contact without retaining the alarm-circuit closed for a long period, and all the springs are very delicate, so that the pressure does not retard the clock.

In turning the pointer 1) forward past the end of the hand the spring 0' yields easily, so that the circuit-controlling device is not injured by the movement of the pointer past the end of the hand in either direction.

It is obvious that modifications may be made in the construction and arrangement of the parts without departing from the invention as, for example, the main portion of the circuit closing and breaking device might be carried by the pointer 13 or its equivalent, instead of by the clock-hand, this being a mere inversion of the arrangement shown, and other changes will be readily suggested to persons familiar with the art to which the invention relates.

The pointer 13 is useful even as a visual indicator, and will be of assistance without the circuit-closer, or if the circuit were disconnected, so that the audible signal or alarm would not be operated.

The clock-movement supporting-arms a are preferably connected with posts (F, that are connected with the bezel n n, so that the clock-movement is retained accurately centered with the bezel, the said posts being com 1 1' )3 'lhe spring 1 posed of or provided with insulating material, so as to prevent electrical connection between the clock-movement and bezel, except when the members of the circuit-closer connected, respectively, with said parts come into engagement.

' WVhen vessels are provided with incandescent electric lamps, one may be used in the lantern-case at the rear of the clock, in which case the heatinsulating arrangements h h may not be required.

I claim- 1. The combination of a clock-movement and hands thereof connected with an electric circuit, one of said hands being provided with an electric contact constituting one terminal of said circuit, with a crystal in front of said clock-hands provided with a circular metallic frame insulated from the clock-movement, but connected with and forming the other terminal of the before-mentioned electric circuit, and a pointer frictionally pivoted in said crystal concentrically with the OlOCkdlfiJldS, the end of said pointer bearing with springpressure against the metallic frame of said crystal and being provided with a contact cooperating with the one carried by the clockhand, substantially as and for the purpose described.

2. The combination of a clock-hand and electric contact fixed thereon with a yielding contact-carrierinsulated from said clock-hand and provided with a spring-pressed contact normally engaging, the said contact on the hand and a stationary contact co-operating with said yielding carrier, substantially as described.

3. An electric circuit closer and breaker for clocks, comprising two members, one carried by the clock-hand and the other located in the path thereof and completing the circuit when the member carried by the clock-hand engages the other member, combined with a contact-piece in the same circuit co-operating with one of said members, which is operated by the movement of the clock-hand, as described, whereby the circuit is broken, while the two members that originally closed it still remain in engagement,substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

WVILLIAM E. IIADLOCK.

Witnesses:

Josl. LIvERMoRE, M. E. HILL. 

